Inadequate Funds Affecting Azumah Nelson Complex, 9 Others

Acting national coordinator of the National Youth Council (NYC) Archibald Donkor has described inadequate budgetary allocation to fund its activities as the bane of the Council for years now, leading to its dormancy and ineffectiveness.

The Council derives it mandate from the NRCD 241 of 1974 to oversee as well as coordinate and support youth activities.

Currently the Council operates 10 youth leadership and skills training institutes throughout the country with the headquarters at  the Azumah Nelson Sports Complex.

A visit to the premises reveal a sorrow state of the once revered sports facility which was home to many sporting activities in the years past.

The playing field had lost the green turf it used to have, while the inner perimeter fencing have been swallowed up by creeping plants, making it virtually invisible.

The basketball rims are in had shape while the volley ball court and its surrounding have been taken over by weeds with a portion now being used as dumping side.

The swimming pool which drew a lot of patrons has been sealed off. Investigations revealed that a former head of the NYC Col. E.K. Nawurah came to an agreement with the then Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA) to use the swimming pool area for boxing bouts.

With regards to the playing field, Mr Donkor explained that it is under the care of the National Sports Council (NSC).

The only facility in good condition is the tennis court which the Kaneshie Lawn Tennis Club KALATEC) has been managing over the past 30 years.

He explained that until 1992 the NYC had its offices at the State House till the then Youth and Sports Minister, E.T. Mensah asked them to move to their present location to assume the management of the complex.

Since then, there has been problems with funds to carry out programmes that offer young people opportunities for the productive use of their leisure and recreation and also coordinating and supporting youth activities.

Again the movement of the Council from one ministry to the other has also contributed a lot to their lack of ineffectiveness. This, he explained, is so because all the ministry's the Council went under in the past had their own problems to contend with and so the council was relegated to the background.

“For the past eight years the NYC has been shuffling between the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment as well as the presidency and this has been our bane”.

He said successive ministers have promised to help them without it being honoured, “ now that we have a minister who is himself a youth and can identify with us we know the council will be vibrant again”.